Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real Promises Music for Everyone

Arriving Aug. 25, the new self-titled album by Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real sounds like it promises music for all tastes.

Comprised of 12 Lukas originals the collection kicks off with the country rocker “Set Me Down on a Cloud.” The Glen Campbell-inspired “Just Outside of Austin” features a guitar solo by Lukas’ famous father, Willie Nelson, and piano work by his 86-year-old aunt Bobbie.

On backing vocals, Lady Gaga sings on “Carolina” and “Find Yourself,” while Jess Wolfe and Holly Lessig of the indie-pop group Lucius provide gospel-rooted harmonies on five tracks.

The album was produced by John Alagia (Dave Matthews Band, John Mayer) and recorded at the Village Studios in West Los Angeles with the band’s current lineup. They are keyboardist Alberto Bof, drummer Anthony LoGerfo, bassist Corey McCormick, percussionist Tato Melgar, multi-instrumentalist and steel guitarist Jesse Siebenberg and Lukas on guitar and lead vocals.

In 2014, Neil Young recruited Promise of the Real to be his road and studio band, and the rock legend has mentored the musicians ever since. Together, they have performed around the world and on Young’s two most recent albums.

“I knew I had a lot of good songs that transcended the cultural boundaries between rock ‘n’ roll and country,” Lukas says in a release. “We owe a lot to Neil. We made this record after coming off the road with him for two years. Neil’s been mentoring us, and we’ve been absorbing that energy, and I think it shows. We got acclimated to a different level of artistic expression. I wanted to get the songs as pure as they could be. We’ve grown.”

Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real is currently on tour with Sheryl Crow and Willie’s new Outlaw Music Festival along with Crow, Bob Dylan, the Avett Brothers, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, My Morning Jacket, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats and Margo Price.